They offered six different flavors of yogurt at any given time (not including "swirls") and lots of different types of toppings, from the standard (sprinkles, gummy bears, M&M's, chocolate sauce) to the unusual (chocolate rocks, granola, carob chips). They changed their flavors regularly, though Vanilla and Chocolate were always available, as well as one dairy-free and one no-sugar-added flavor. You could sample them upon request. The website showed the flavors currently available.

Cups came in three sizes. The smallest were the biodegradable cups. The styrofoam "to go" cups were slightly larger. Quart-size styrofoam containers were also available upon request. Customers first selected a cup, then filled their cup with frozen yogurt, added toppings, then proceeded to the cash register to weigh their dish. First-timers (and even second- or third-timers) often suffered from the "eyes are bigger than their stomach" phenomenon, and ended up going completely overboard piling yogurt and toppings into their cup. While some individuals would simply cut their losses and end up throwing half their yogurt away, others would valiantly eat the whole thing, thus learning a valuable lesson in moderation.

They also sold waffle cones, bananas, t-shirts, water, and sodas. The specialty candy on the top tier also cost $.38 per ounce, and could either be placed on your yogurt or bagged separately. Gift certificates started at $5 and gift cards start at $20.

There used to be a list of the heaviest yogurt cups eaten in the store. They were listed on a sort of "Hall of Fame" list behind the counter. Individuals who could beat the top person on the list (by eating, in-store, a heavier amount than the current top individual) would win a gift card. The list was removed and the competition discontinued because, literally, it was causing people to eat a sickening amount of frozen yogurt.

Suggestions for toppings and flavors were always welcome. There was a container next to the register where you could suggest toppings and yogurt flavors. The most popular ones were chosen as customer choices.

Comments:

2007-09-04 22:27:08 I attended the grand opening and it was great.Free yogurt after the big game hit the spot. I recommend the choc, swirl or vanilla flavor. They also have tropical and fruit yogurt. Lots of toppings to choose very over 20, very tasty. The staff is super friendly and the atmosphere very welcoming a great addition to a college town !!! —ElizabethBarthel

2007-09-11 11:00:03 I think its great that they offer compostable cups, however there is no receptacle for composting, so these special cups are just going in the regular garbage. I tried e-mailing the Yogurt Shack to suggest that they provide a composting receptacle, but the e-mail bounced. —LaurenMcNees

2007-09-12 13:10:24 ill be sure to let him know about the composting receptacle and about the email. thanks —JackkiCox

2007-09-15 18:18:07 expensive if you get a lot, but a nice option if you just want a taste. Also they offer fresh fruit with the yogart (currently blueberries and strawberries). I kind of wish all the candy was self serve though, and with the yogart. —MattHh

2007-09-17 22:29:42 We went there for the first time today and they either way over charged us or they are way to expensive. We got 5 yogurts (2 adults and 3 kids all in the small cup) and it was just over $25. It was good but I think $5 per yogurt is a bit crazy. They weren't even big ones. —HeatherFlood

2007-09-19 10:03:39 Went there for the first time yesterday. Great prices, I got a good-sized serving with all my toppings for a little over 3 bucks, however, the decor seemed a little lacking... the whitish walls just seemed so sterile considering it is a "shack". BUT yummy yogurt! I wasn't a fan of the NY Cheesecake though, it tasted weird. —ChristyL

2007-09-23 20:34:03 Ok, I have to say I don't really understand the concept behind this place (and similar places) — you get yogurt, as opposed to ice cream, because it's healthier? less fat? And then you throw a lot of high fat candy on it? Or do some people genuinely prefer frozen yogurt to soft serve ice cream? But even though I can't make sense of it logically, I have to admit it's downright tasty. I tend to go for a yogurt with chocolate in it; black cherry was also good, whereas I couldn't really taste the peanut butter in the peanut butter chocolate. As for toppings, I imagine I'm pretty boring as these things go, but heath bar, brownie, oreos, and coconut make a good combo. $3 gave me a portion that was plenty big enough (easier to achieve if you take the smaller cup — there's definitely a tendency to get more with the larger cup). I saw people walking all over town with cups of this stuff, and so I'm guessing this place will do pretty well. Oh, and if you want to be "virtuous," you can get just the yogurt alone, or yogurt with just fruit. —CovertProfessor

2007-09-23 20:35:01 I actually like the taste of frozen yogurt better than ice cream. —Graham.Freeman

2007-10-03 10:17:56 Maybe some tangy (like Pinkberry's) or Asian flavors (like taro, red bean, or green tea). I also really like mochi balls as a topping like Yogurtland in Irvine has. I tried substituting marshmallows in for the mochi balls and it wasn't very good that way. Too sweet. —DiLane

2007-10-03 23:15:46 I happen to love frozen yogurt, it is delicious, hmm as for this place, it is good yogurt, and the toppings are great, I love having a wide selection; perhaps I am a bit cheap, but it is a bit more expensive than I like, especially as the coffee house sells it at near half the rate, but I suppose with less flavors and the lack of toppings. I suppose it is a good price given the lack of real alternative, I just wish they had more flavors. —DavidPoole

2007-10-12 20:31:49 This place sucks. Please replace yogurt shack with PINKBERRY. The cappuccino flavored yogurt just tastes like chocolate. I think the soft serve yogurt at the DC might just be about the same as this place, minus all the candy toppings. When I went last weekend Yogurt shack only had two types of fresh fruit and some canned pineapple. This place is not good at all and not cheap either. But they do have a huge variety of candies. —AmyYang

2007-10-16 16:50:35 we don't use canned pineapple. All of our fruit is fresh and never frozen and we cut the pineapple up ourselves. —socalkristini

2007-10-16 17:06:48 wow...cool, sounds like yogurt land ive been going to over summer in Irvine —KaiWan

2007-11-13 09:23:05 Went here for the first time yesterday for some root bear float flavored yogurt. The yogurt unfortunately did not taste enough like root beer for me, but overall, it was okay. Nothing prize winning. I'll come back and try another flavor sometime. —kthrnngo

2007-12-21 13:33:34 I went to Yogurt Shack for the first time yesterday with my girlfriend. Sampled the Irish Mint and Cherries Jubilee or whatever it was called. Both of them were really gross, but my girlfriend kinda liked the Irish Mint. Also, a lot of the toppings didn't seem to go with frozen yogurt (Coca-Cola candies?). We got two yogurts that were barely half of the cup and our bill ended up being almost $12, what a rip off. I think they weighed the cup too. We could have shared a large at Swirl for $6 and it would have been more yogurt than that. I mean, the yogurt tasted good I guess before it melted. It melted super fast even though we were walking around in Davis during winter at night (don't ask me why we were eating frozen yogurt at night in winter, my girlfriend wanted to go...). —DannyYu

2007-12-30 17:11:10 We do not weigh the cup. Also if your yogurts were 12 dollars total that means they were close to a pound each. Also the toppings on the top row are bulk candy, such as cola bottles, which is bagged separately. —JackkiCox

2008-02-08 12:59:33 I like the fact that they have a wide variety of toppings to choose from, but I thought that their frozen yogurt was just okay. I had their Orange, Banana, and Vanilla. I would not recommend getting either of these fruit flavors, as they tasted awfully artificial. And... I don't know how often they wipe down their tables - It appeared clean to us at first, but as we sat down I found a pubic hair on the table. I found it rather disgusting and was puzzled as to how it got there, but I'm sure something like that doesn't happen very often. —at86

2008-02-08 13:54:47 While I still like this place, Big Spoon Yogurt in Sacramento has much better yogurt and topping selection. —JamesSchwab

2008-04-05 18:48:23 my girlfriend is addicted to this place. It's interfering with her life. Damn you, yogurt shack! —BradBenedict

2008-04-21 21:36:06 I think I have the same problem with my girlfriend...addiction is an ugly thing. It's convenient and I've always enjoyed it as well and a drive to Sac for yogurt is a bit extreme with gas prices unless your expenses are paid for. —patrick82

2008-04-22 01:13:39 Tasty yogurt! Artificially flavored. Very customizable, which is nice. Most toppings are not healthy, which is not so nice (although strawberries are available.) You pay by the ounce, and there is not a good way to determine the weight of what you've taken before you pay for it. But it's a good place to go for dessert, so long as you don't take too much. —IDoNotExist

2008-06-13 13:29:35 I love this place. The prices were decent, the toppings had a wide variety, and the frozen yogurt was delicious. Its a great place for college students, and everything is organized and easy to find. —jrendler

2008-09-19 19:12:33 It's alright, but 40c per ounce is too costly. There's a plethora of yogurt places popping up, and the high cost you'll get for a decent sized yogurt with toppings isn't that impressive. Otherwise, the yogurt itself (and some of the toppings) are great! I've also been to the Danville location a couple of times. —EdWins

2008-10-26 15:50:02 A little pricey, but dessert often is. Like CovertProfessor, I'm a little confused with the whole concept too, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the place. I had a fat free marshmallow flavored yogurt, which was really tasty. I made sure to make it not fat-free by adding all kinds of Reese's PB cups and Heath bar chunks to my yogurt, which I guess would have made it impossible to make it anything but delicious.

I don't exactly see how one could actually make a place like this bad, unless they had absolutely horrible base yogurt to begin with. My friend and I laughed for a little too long at the idea of putting jawbreakers, tootsie-roll pops, and other such foods into a yogurt (the place sells those candies, but they're not made to be mixed in - obviously). —BrandonWong

2009-02-15 22:05:27 Hm.. I like that they have a huge selection but I feel like the yogurt is too sweet. —renee415

2009-03-15 13:46:56 I went last week and they now asked me "for here or to go?" I was thrown off by this. I said "for here I guess" thinking they would give me a lid and I did not want one. Apparently, and I did not notice this (my friend told me later), but they are now charging extra "for here." anyone know why? Seems ridiculous. —EricaMacGregor

By law, food that is "eaten in" is supposed to be charged tax, while food that is "to go" is not. Many restaurants don't do this properly, but Yogurt Shack is in fact complying with the law. —CovertProfessor

Sadly, you're wrong. The law is far more complicated than that. In general, all food eaten in a restaurant is subject to a tax. All hot food, whether eaten on at the restaurant or to go, is taxed. Bakery items or hot drinks aren't subject to tax as long as they aren't bought with any items that are taxed. And then after that, you get into regulations based on the percentage of revenue the establishment gets from various things... it is quite silly we are taxed in such a convoluted way. —wl

Ok, I guess you're right (both about the law, and certainly about how silly the law is). But the explanation for the yogurt is the same — take-out=untaxed, eat-in=taxed. —CovertProfessor

2009-03-15 21:28:51 I actually checked on this over the summer after a restaurant owner told me that to go isn't taxed. It turns out that it is up to the establishment to determine if they are supposed to charge you tax or not, and if I remember correctly, this is in some way determined by how many seats they have or what kind of seating they have. If they do NOT charge you tax, they have to be able to prove that only the correct customers were not charged tax. This involves saving all of their receipts. The rules are convoluted, but it would be quite easy for the restaurant to run afoul of them.

For the record, Yogurt Shack does charge tax on all purchases. —IDoNotExist

2009-03-16 22:13:32 My friends like this place better than I do. I prefer Cultive for their tangy yogurt, although maybe YS is working on that. —BrookeB

2009-04-02 21:06:30 Starting today, The Yogurt Shack is serving an all natural, super premium plain TART frozen yogurt. We are also serving rainbow MOCHI. We are serving both of these products due to the requests and suggestions we received from customers in our suggestion box and on our website. So far today and tonight our customers seemed very happy with these additions. We will also be adding a fourth machine which will allow us to offer eight frozen yogurt flavors instead of six.

Just to clear a couple of things up:

Our price is .38 per ounce. We used to charge more for the top row of premium candy, but it became difficult to ring things up separately and keep the line moving. So now it's .38 per ounce for yogurt, toppings and premium candy.

If the purchase is "to go", there is no sales tax. If it's "for here", sales tax is applied.

The Yogurt Shack is not a franchise. The owner works in the Davis store full time and lives in downtown Davis.

Our customer support in Davis has been amazing over the last year and a half. We always want feedback from our customers, please email us at yogurtshack@yahoo.com with any comments or suggestions.

2009-04-27 21:30:22 Tried the tart about a week ago, and it did not disappoint. I am very glad they made this addition, because my friends loved yogurt shack, and I always had to go to Cultive to get the flavor I wanted. Now I can go with them to the shack! Thanks for listening to the comments! —BrookeB

2009-05-10 17:04:15 I usually hate frozen yogurt, but Yogurt Shack is yummy! —jadeeyes1113

2009-05-11 10:40:03 That fellow who works there, Jesse Vasquez, is a cool dude! —JohnDudek

2009-05-31 18:52:57 I like this place, the yogurt is yummy and owner, indeed a local guy, with a local family, is friendly and will give you generous taste tests. It can be pricey if you over indulge. I have learned that those containers hold more than you think! My daughter is a big fan of the toppings, particularly the sprinkles and the gummy bears. —HazelWatson

2009-06-10 12:10:40 The Tart flavor is wonderful and has made me come back to Yogurt Shack after a while away. Also love the maple almonds (?) from Woodland. One thing, unrelated to the food itself — they used to use biodegradable spoons, and don't any longer, which is a bummer. As a result I bring my own, but they're so fast to add plastic spoons to the yogurt that I keep on wasting them. Kinda defeats the eco-purpose of carrying around my own silverware. —Kay

2009-06-11 18:12:09 Absolutely my favorite yogurt place in Davis. Very friendly and helpful staff. I love the biodegradable cups. Bring back the biodegradable spoons and add a compost garbage bin! —jsg718

2009-07-14 20:32:23 Yum-Oh! Best yogurt in town. Be sure to pick up their temp tattoos! —davisgirl10

2009-07-24 10:22:37 Obviously the toppings and yogurt are delicious here- no doubt about that. I also really appreciate how friendly and helpful the employees are there. It makes a big difference! —Kiran

2009-08-15 22:28:33 i love yogurt shack, everytime i go here i spend less than 2 dollars on a sufficient amount of ice cream (usually orange or acai with watermelon slices) and it is a lot for like 1.50. except one time when i was weighing my ice cream my total was 1.55 and i took out 1 watermelon slice and it made it 1.49 so now i just get the yogurt —lajolla4joya

2009-11-10 21:56:30 This place has good yogurt with a wide array of toppings. I've gotten yogurt several times there since it opened and as of lately, the customer service has been very poor. The next time I want frozen yogurt, I'm going to Yoloberry, where I can get both great yogurt and friendly customer service. —Tillandsia

2010-01-10 22:55:07 In response to the owner's statement that they do not charge sales tax if you get it to go, I once went there and said that I was getting it to go. I was told that they charge sales tax regardless, because they have no way to tell if you are getting the yogurt to go. I told them that I was definitely getting it to go, and was not going to eat it in the store. They said that it didn't matter, and they would charge me sales tax anyway. The manager also said the same thing. Now, it may be that the owner does not think that they charge sales tax to go, but apparently the store's employees do not agree... (Unfortunately for Yogurt Shack, I found YoloBerry and some other dessert places a short time later. While I still go to Yogurt Shack sometimes, they probably cost themselves a fair bit of business that day...) Keeping your staff informed of your store's policies is really important... —IDoNotExist

2010-09-12 13:24:21 This place has so many toppings!! I prefer getting non-tarty yogurts here. I think that's what they do best. I have gone here a good number of times and my overall experience has been good. Workers are very friendly. —anonymon

2010-10-12 13:35:44 Unlike Pinkberry, the staff we more interested in gossip than customers. Luckily this is a self serve establishment. I tried the Prailines & Pecan Yogurt with a very small portion of Andes Mint. My cost was just over $1.00. Another member of our group got the plain vanilla with more toppings than yogurt and his cost a bit over $8.00. Fair due to what was purchased.

I will personally not be going back. The yogurt is of the same quality as Yolo Berry, Cultive and others but the service really ruined the experience for me. —Wes-P

2010-11-21 16:00:48 Dang, that was my favorite frozen yogurt place. At least I just went there -wonder if I got the last cup (the place was empty). —SteveDavison

2010-11-21 16:32:43 I'm sorry to see this place go. I wonder if Pinkberry did it in. Pfthpt! to Pinkberry if so. —CovertProfessor

2010-11-21 19:33:04 Yogurt Shack was the first Yogurt place in town, but I know I stopped going when Yolo Berry came about (easier parking, better atmosphere) and with Pinkberry down the street, I'm not surprised. Nevertheless, they tried and it's sad to see them go. —ChristyMarsden

2010-11-27 00:13:52 Wow I remembered this place was one of the first two yogurt places that opened in Davis and ushered in the frozen yogurt craze. I remembered their yogurt was ok and that Cultive(Swirl) frozen yogurt tasted better. I graduated in 2007 and now I hear there are more frozen yogurt places. Nexy time I am up here again I will give the other places a shot. —SimonFung

2011-05-02 00:29:44 I remember going in a few months after it opened, and they didn't have mochi. Then Yoloberry moved in, then Pinkberry.. —WaylandLee